Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1887-01-14
VERMONT MERlNO SHEEPBREEDERS
ASSOCIATION

THE ANNUAL MEETING, WEDNEsDAY-
OFFICERS ELECTED AND REPORTS SUR
MITTED.
The annual meeting of the Vermont
Merino Sheep-Breeders' association was
held at the town hall in this village on
Wednesday. The attendance was fairly
large. including most of the prominent
breeders of the county and several from
outside. Among the latter we're DR..
Prime, Col. F. II. harrington. DR.. Smith
and G. VI. Winslow of Brandon: W. Pitt
Hall and Geo. ID. Wheaton of Pittsford.
John II. Mead of West Rutland and ;.
W. Mead of Proctor. The old officers
were reelected, the secretary's salary
was fixed at SlSO0 and half the annual
membership fee was rcmtted. A detailed
report of the proceedings follows:
The meeting was called TO order at
eleven o'clock by Cassius p. Crane of
Bridport, president of the association.
who called for the report of the secre-
tary, Albert Chapman of Middlcbury.
Mr.. Chapman presented the following ::
The past year has been the one OF greatest
depression in the sheep business since the as
sociation was established, vet il stands strong
cr today than Il year ago. The membership
Jan. !, lSsG, was l22j; of these, 4j have with
drawn or have been suspended and AZ new
members have bee. added to the list, making
the present membership l222, or three less
than last year 1t is desirable that this list be
materially reduced by the action of the com
mittcc ON pedigrccs as soon after the annual
ip haN lac sl11 IN 1t.. flt..
books and suspend such members as do not
promptly send in their lambs and pay their
membership fee for lsSG, upon due notice be.
9hg sent to them by such committee.
Your secretary would again repeat what he
has stated in former reports, that these dclin.
quent members who are tardy in remittng
dues, sending in lambs or transfers, make
much more work at the office than the larger
number that attend to these things promptly.
ON the first OF January 1t was found that $40
members had not sent in the tee tor lSSG, al.
though IL was conspicuously printed III the
circular sent to every member last winter. II
these had all complied with the rules, the
treasury would have Sl2i0 more cash than il
now has. There was due on that day on lamb
fees for 1856 over 800 more and register
ing fees on fiocks accepted 500. II is not like
ly that all of these sums, amounting to over
SliOO in the aggregate, Will be realized by the
| association, though there is no visible reason
why most may not be collected. OF the
members on the rolls, nearly 400 had not sent
in their lambs tor lSS6 at the close OF the year.
This involves II large amount OF work at the
| office ana Tor the committee ON Deuigrees.
Ii will be seen by the report OF the auditors
that the amount of cash in the treasury ut
| present is some $50 greater than was reported
| n year ago. This, with II part of what may
| reasonably be expected to be paid in from
| memberships and lamb fees due, will be
wanted to pay for third volume now nearly
printed, and which would have been ready
tor distribution today had the printers not
| been obliged To stop work ON il to do state
/ printing, which they were under heavy bonds
| To have completed by n stated time. BY II
/ - "a IA nf in
scrting the fiocks, but in the size of type and
abbrcViation of histories OF flocks, while every
tact relating to those histories has been Civ
en- as completely as in the first and second
volumes il has been possible to so cOndcnSc
the third as 10 make il much smaller than the
second, and give finer better work, and make
it II much better and more attractive volume
and get all OF II into Il smaller number of
pages. The tables of heavy shcaring rams
and ewes that will appear in this volume will
show remarkable advance in the improve
mcnt of MerinO sheep during the four years
since the publication OF our second volume.
II has been evident that II number of mem.
Ders have been disappointed because the vol
ulnc has not been issued before, but four wears
mas not been very long time to look up the
pedigrees of over six hundred and fifty fiocks,
present them to the committee on pedigrees,
after they are accepted record them, write
out their histories, prepare them Tor the prn.
! ter, add the lambs tor three years TO the $50
| fiOcks already published in second volume,
make the list OF stock rams up to over 1900,
get IL all as accurate as possible, and during
/
citation in small sums, pay its bills and eX.
penditures, do all the necessary cOrrespon.
dence, especially that which is made necessa-
| sary by dillatory and delinquent members.
| If any members think this an easy task tor
| four years ii would be interesting to find an.
| other association that has not taken more
| time to publish the histories of less than hall
| the number OF hOcks. So TAR as our work on
| il is concerned, IL would have been more sal.
isfactory il we could have had another year
| to have made il more perfect.
This volume brings the number OF fiocks
that have been recorded up to lll9, and the
number OF stock rams to 1920. OF the number
of hocks about 80 or 60 are not in regular
standing on our records in consequence OF
/ suspensions or Withdrawals of their owners
but there are plenty LETT to keep the number
as large or larger than Is tor the best interest
OF the association.
II we mistake not the signs OF the times
there is good reason to hope tor an improve.
ment in the sheep business the coming sea.
son. The prospect Tor IA much better and
more remunerative price tor wool than we
/ have had during the two years past is cncOur.
~ al hs